Snapshots
by axdorkxable
Summary: Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".
1. Own

**Title: **Snapshots

**Summary:** Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".

**Disclaimer:** All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use.

**Archiving:** Ask for permission.

**Spoilers: **Set during "Vick's Chip"

**Part 1 - Own**

"You lied to me!" Sarah snapped. "Why?"

"It was for the integrity of the mission."

"Bullshit! You could have gotten us killed!"

Cameron tilted her head slightly to the side. "I will do anything to protect you and John."

"Why not Derek, huh?"

"I do not like him."

Sarah blinked in surprised. "What?"

"I do not like him," Cameron repeated, looking down at the floor. "In the future, I saw him as a comrade, but even now he still hated me. I have never owned anything, but you gave me a room and called it mine, and he entered without my permission. I do not like him."

Sarah stared wide-eyed at the terminator. "You don't like him because he went through your stuff?"

"Yes."

Sarah sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache coming on. "Fine." She glared. "Next time, do not lie."

Cameron looked at her, a genuine grin on her face. "Thank you."

Sarah shook her head and stormed out of the kitchen, mumbling something about stupid robots and their possessions.


	2. Anger

**Title: **Snapshots

**Summary:** Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".

**Disclaimer:** All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use.

**Archiving:** Ask for permission.

**Part 2 - Anger**

Sarah woke up with a gasp, her body already reacting to the threat that was not there. She listened closely, her eyes darting around the room, but she could hear only the wind outside and the TV. Lowering the gun, she looked at the clock and nearly groaned; 2:12am. Less than three hours of sleep.

Hauling herself out of bed, she padded silently to the living room - being silent only for John and Derek, as she knew Cameron would've heard her change in breathing long before she got out of bed.

The blue light from the TV illuminated her pathway as she walked in, and she found Cameron lying on the couch watching TV - as in on her back, with one arm under her head, the other draped on her stomach. Sarah shouldn't have been surprised, as this was nothing knew, but it still surprised her. A month ago, Cameron had started acting more…human; smiling, leaning lazily against a doorframe, even _pouting_.

"Nightmare?" Cameron asked quietly, mindful of the other sleeping occupants.

Sarah nodded, but didn't elaborate. "What are you watching?"

"The channel is on the Late Night Show, but I am performing scans of the perimeter and interior, looking for any threats."

"And I'm guessing since you're laying there, there is none," Sarah joked.

"Correct. Do you want coffee?" Cameron asked as she sat up.

"Lie back down, I'm going to try to get more sleep."

"There is a ten percent chance of you falling back to sleep."

Sarah glared. "I don't need your damn statistics!" With one last glare, she stormed out of the room.

Cameron watched her go, feeling torn. On one hand, Sarah Connor's feelings were not part of her mission protocol; but, then again, neither were hers. On the other hand, she wanted to follow Sarah, wanting to comfort her from her nightmares. After some hesitation, she got up and began her rounds, and then she would check on Sarah.

By the time she made it outside of Sarah's room one hour and twenty-two minutes later, Sarah was still not asleep. The door was wide open, and she could see the woman repeatedly punch the wall; the wall that was mostly concrete. She quickly went up behind the slightly smaller woman, grabbing a hold of Sarah's arms.

"Stop. You are hurting yourself."

Sarah growled and struggled to get away from her. "Let me go!"

"No, I will not let you continue hurting yourself." Sarah turned to face Cameron, but the terminator didn't let her go. She started pushing against Cameron - though the brunette noticed there was barely any strength behind it.

"Let me go."

Cameron pulled Sarah close to her, so she was trapped in her arms. "No."

Sarah struggled for nearly five minutes before she collapsed fully into Cameron. "I hate you."

"I know."

"I'm tired," Sarah said before she yawned. Cameron let her go so she could stumble towards the bed. Cameron tilted her head at Sarah's emotional switch; Sarah always surprised her one way or another.


	3. Hot

**Title: **Snapshots

**Summary:** Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".

**Disclaimer:** All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use.

**Archiving:** Ask for permission.

**AN:** I have no beta so please forgive my mistakes.

**Part 3 - Hot**

Sarah rolled her head lazily to the side as bare feet hit the wooden floor of the kitchen. Cameron, dressed in just a tank top and shorts, was completely comfortable in the one hundred degree weather.

Not having enough energy to move her head, she continue to stare at Cameron as the terminator cleaned off her hands at the sink. "Any luck?"

"No, with the amount of damage, it would be easier to buy a new one."

Sarah groaned. "We don't have enough money to buy a new air conditioner."

Cameron didn't answer right away, finishing washing her hands. When she was done, she turned to Sarah, frowning. "If we do not get a new one, you could overheat."

"I know." Sarah frowned. "I'm jealous; you're not even bothered by this heat."

Cameron grinned, her brown eyes sparkling. "I know. John was looking for you earlier, said he wanted to show you something in the garage."

"Do I have to," Sarah whined. With a huffed she forced herself off the chair. "What did he want?"

Cameron shrugged. "I do not know, he didn't say."

Sarah rolled her eyes, but headed outside anyways. Cameron followed her, thought Sarah had no idea why. She found John in the garage just as Cameron had said, but the boy was standing in front of a tarp, rocking back and forth on his heels.

She raised and eyebrow and crossed her arms. "What did you do?"

"Mom! What makes you think I did anything?" John whined, though there was a grin on his face.

"Cameron said you wanted to see me?" John nodded enthusiastically and moved out of the way, pulling the tarp off as he went. As the tarp finally slid away, it revealed an air conditioner. Sarah immediately turned to Cameron.

"I thought I told you we couldn't afford a new one!"

Cameron frowned. "I didn't buy it. John built it."

Sarah blinked and looked between the two. "What?"

"It was John's idea, after we found the old one could not be repaired."

John rolled his eyes. "Ignore her, she did most of the work."

Sarah pulled John into a hug, but she looked over at Cameron. "Thank you, both of you." She kissed John's head before letting him go. "And I'm sorry for getting angry before you explained."

Cameron gave her a smile. "It's okay."

As they walked back inside, with the new air conditioner in hand, Sarah turned to Cameron, laughter dancing in her eyes. "I'm still jealous."


	4. Touch

**Title: **Snapshots

**Summary:** Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".

**Disclaimer:** All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use.

**Archiving:** Ask for permission.

**Part 4 - Touch**

It had started out as a simple, fleeting touch. Most mornings Cameron would hand her a cup of coffee, letting their fingers fleetingly touch. Then, when Cameron would hand her something, their hands or arms would touch.

As time went on, the touches grew bolder; arms brushing when they walked, Cameron gently pushing her out of harms way, the gentle caress on her skin when the terminator dresses her wounds. It made her head spin.

Because with every touch, every caress, it made her heart stop and electricity flow through her; and it wasn't out of fear.

"Sarah?"

Sarah jumped as a hand gently touched her shoulder. She looked up, startled, looking into the calm face of Cameron. "What?" She snapped., moving away from the touch - and the sparks it brought.

Cameron tilted her head to the side, a frown on her face. For a moment, Sarah thought the terminator would question the movement. "Are you alright?"

Sarah scowled. "Why do you care?"

"I am worried."

Sarah scoffed in disbelief. "Yeah, right. You're just a robot. You can't feel anything."

Cameron's frown deepened, and her eye showed both anger and sadness. "I am a cybernetic organism, and I do feel." Without saying anything else, Cameron turned and walked out of the room.

After that, Cameron didn't touch her anymore than absolutely necessary.


	5. 120 Seconds

**Title: **Snapshots

**Summary:** Snapshots of the relationship between Cameron and Sarah, leading up and beyond "Her Choice".

**Disclaimer:** All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use.

**Archiving:** Ask for permission.

**Part 5 - 120 Seconds**

Time seemed to slow down as Sarah watched Derek and John carry Cameron's body over to the bed. She didn't even notice when both John and Derek left, the older man complaining about the terminator; all of her senses were focused towards the body on the bed.

The once flawless skin was marked up by multiple wounds: some gun shot, some from the blast Cameron didn't avoid. Cameron's eyes, once brown eyes full of life, were now dull.

It had been more than 120 seconds.

The thought that Cameron would wake with a damaged chip and terminate anyone of them floated through her mind, but she immediately pushed that thought away; the terminator had promised Sarah she had done everything to prevent that from happening again. And Sarah believed her.

"Mom? Do you want me to patch her up?"

Sarah looked at John - standing in the doorway, nervously holding a first aid kit - then back to Cameron. "No, I'll do it."

John went over to the bed and set the kit down, before turning and enveloping his mother into a hug. "She'll be alright."

"I hope so," she choked out, squeezing him back. John stepped back, giving her a weak smile, before leaving the room.

When she could no longer hear his footsteps, she focused completely back on Cameron. She bypassed the first aid kit for now; she couldn't repair the wounds with clothes in the way - what was left of them anyway.

The tank top was a lot easier to remove then the jeans; but, when Cameron was completely undressed, Sarah could finally see the extent of the damage. Forty percent of the skin from Cameron's left side was gone, most of on her side, arm, and back. The rest of Cameron's skin was riddled with random missing pieces, bullet holes, and bruises.

Once again bypassing the kit, she went into the bathroom and grabbed a small towel and bowel - which she had started keeping in there when the number of injuries increased. As gently as she could, she began to clean off the blood from Cameron's body as best as she could.

"Why did you do this?" She whispered. "Why didn't you stick to the plan?" Cameron didn't answer. It took her a good amount of time to clean the wounds and take out the many bullets, but she tried to be as gentle as she could. As she started dressing the wounds, she found herself hesitating when her hand touched the terminator endoskeleton.

"I should be flinching," she said as she ran a finger over the metal. "You are a robot." She chucked; she could hear Cameron in her head automatically correcting her. "Sorry, cybernetic organism." She resumed bandaging. "I shouldn't have said what I said the other day. I was angry, and confused. But now," she paused, setting a hand on Cameron's now covered chest. "Now I'm afraid I'm going to lose you."

It had been a simple mission: enter the guys house, gather as much info as possible, then leave. They had gotten in easy enough, but it was on their way out did they have a problem. Unknownst to them, Skynet had sent back another terminator to try and kill John.

Cameron _was_ supposed to distract the terminator long enough for John to escape, Cameron _was _supposed to wait for further assistance. Sarah had gotten John to the stolen truck that was parked two blocks away when they felt, and heard, the explosion. Forcing John to go home, she had ran back to the house.

When she reached the house, it was completely engulfed in flames. Only one thought had flashed through her mind, and it was not the unknown terminator. She had no clue if Cameron had survived the blast. Her answer came when she found Cameron's body amongst the debris that littered the road; eyes open but lifeless.

And then they were back to here.

Sighing in frustration, she ran a hand through her hair - still covered in dirt from the earlier fight - and rummaged through her drawers for something Cameron could wear. Grabbing a random tank top and sweats, she turned back to Cameron.

The terminator was still lifeless, and Sarah grit her teeth at the helplessness that flowed through her. Dressing the terminator was harder than it looked, as the girl was heavier, but she managed to get Cameron dressed. She sighed and sat on the bed beside Cameron, her body half leaning against the pillows. Leaning her head against her hand, she closed her eyes, trying to get the images out of her head.

When she opened her eyes again, she was in a different position and it was dark; someone had moved her and turned out the lights, but the sun was staring to come over the horizon. Sitting up quickly, her hand automatically grabbing for a gun, she looked around her surroundings. She was still in her bedroom, and Cameron's body was still in the same position. Looking closer, she found the eyelids closed, and Sarah was surprised to see the terminators chest moving up and down with each breath.

"Cameron?" She whispered, secretly hoping she wasn't dreaming.

Cameron's eyes opened and she turned her head to face Sarah; her eyes flashing blue before returning to their usual brown. She gave Sarah a small, hesitant smile. "Hey."

Sarah gave a watery smile in return. "You're awake. Are you okay?"

Cameron sat up slowly, as if gauging how much movement her body could take. "I am functioning normally."

Sarah winced, hearing the cold, robot voice she hadn't heard Cameron use in so long. "Why were you out for so long?"

"I…" Cameron hesitated. "I do not know."

"You don't know?"

"No, but I am functioning within normal parameters. There is no need to worry." Cameron moved to get out of bed, but Sarah forced her back down.

"Damn it Cameron! I'm worried about you!" Cameron's eyes widened, and if the situation was different, Sarah would have laughed. Instead, she slipped out of bed and moved so she was crouched in front of Cameron. "I waited 120 seconds. I waited 120 second for you to wake up, and you didn't. And the fear that went through my mind wasn't if you were going to kill one of us, it was that you were never going to wake up."

Cameron tilted her head to the side, her eyes swimming with confusion. "You…wanted me to wake up?"

"Yeah," Sarah managed out, biting her lip to keep the tears at bay.

"I thought I was just a robot."

Sarah shook her head venomously at that. "No, I should have realized it earlier." She raised her hand, as if to cup Cameron's face, but at the last moment she put her hand back down. "I'm sorry for treating you that way. You are more than a robot, you are…Cameron."

It was Cameron who initiated the contact; cupping Sarah's face, using her thumb to gently caress the woman's cheek, her eyes showing forgiveness. "And you are Sarah."

The sob that she had tried to hold back came out as she collapsed into Cameron. There was a brief moment where Cameron stiffened, but she relaxed and moved so Sarah could comfortably lay in her arms.

"Why didn't you stick with the plan?"

"The terminator was after you, Sarah, and I could not let that happen."

Sarah snorted. "Because I'm John's mother."

"No!" Cameron pulled away enough so she could look the older women in the eye. "Yes, John is my mission, and in turn that would mean you too, but I do not feel that way," she looked away.

Sarah's breath hitched. "What…what do you feel?" Cameron didn't say anything, refusing to look the older woman in the eye. "Cameron?"

Cameron shook her head, and moved away from Sarah. "I should go."

Before Sarah could stop her, Cameron was out the door. In the distance, she could hear a door open, followed by John's excited exclamation. Cameron had walked out on her, again.


End file.
